Live in Conwy? Never been to an Eisteddfod? Welsh Government to support free entry on the opening Sunday

17 Jul 2019 11:29 AM

People in Conwy County will be able to apply for free tickets on the opening Sunday at this summer’s festival, thanks to funding from the Welsh Government.

The funding will allow the Eisteddfod, which begins on 2nd August, to target up to 6,000 local residents who may not have attended the event before, to have the opportunity of experiencing one of the biggest Welsh cultural festivals on August 4th.

The £50,000 of funding will allow the Eisteddfod to attract new visitors in the same way that happened during the 2018 Eisteddfod in Cardiff, where thousands of first-time visitors attended the festival to embrace and take part in activities through the Welsh language.

Announcing the funding, the Welsh Government’s Welsh language Minister, Eluned Morgan yesterday said:

This is a great opportunity for people in Conwy to join in this celebration of Wales.

The Welsh Government has an ambitious plan to grow the number of Welsh speakers to a million by 2050. To reach that goal, we need to provide people with the opportunities to hear the Welsh language, and to use the language in their daily lives, in all kinds of social settings.

The funding I am announcing today will help local families attend the opening Sunday of the festival free of charge. I hope this will provide them with an opportunity to embrace Welsh culture, and in some cases, change their perceptions of what the Eisteddfod is all about – a celebration of Wales, its people and its cultural traditions.

Chief Executive of the National Eisteddfod, Betsan Moses, yesterday said:

The Eisteddfod is an inclusive event that offers a fantastic experience of the Welsh language to people from all walks of life. We are therefore keen to present the event and its experiences to new people at every possible opportunity.

We are very grateful to the minister for her support for the national Eisteddfod, and particularly in this case for our efforts to open the doors and welcome even more people into the Eisteddfod's family.

We will discuss suitable ways of distributing the tickets in conjunction with relevant partners. The aim for us is to ensure that the National Eisteddfod of Conwy County is a means for families who may not previously have a great experience of the Welsh language and everything that our culture.